


I walk the line

by ishmondo



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc
Genre: Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, I AM DOING MY BEST, M/M, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn, They/Them Pronouns for Fujisaki Chihiro, adhd mondo, bc i kin him and im projecting, chihiro is tired of these bitches, i guess, leon is a milf hunter, look i havent written in forever, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-20
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-12 02:14:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,707
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28877778
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ishmondo/pseuds/ishmondo
Summary: Mondo was stubborn. Too stubborn for his own good. Tell the boy to jump, and he says, "Fuck you."Kiyotaka was not a quitter.(In which Kiyotaka wants Mondo to get his shit together, and Mondo wants to be left the hell alone. And also they're gay.)
Relationships: Ishimaru Kiyotaka/Oowada Mondo
Comments: 2
Kudos: 45





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> trigger warning for mention of smoking (sorry)

Mondo Owada could not, for the life of him, pay attention. He was late to class yet again, and felt a pair of critical eyes follow him even after tucking himself away in the corner seat. He glanced back at Kiyotaka, only to be met with a judgemental glare. He looked straight ahead again before the hall monitor could take it as a sign to initiate conversation. Mondo may not be a clairvoyant, but he saw a scolding in his future.

Mondo looked at the papers on his desk, then at the board, then back to his desk. He looked over to his pal Chihiro in hopes that they would be willing to help, but no dice. Chihiro was already scribbling away at their paper and Mondo knew the look on their face well enough to leave them alone when they were in the Zone. He took another look around the room to see who he could talk with, but Leon was preoccupied getting help from the instructor. Nerd.

So, he settled on doing what he was best at: absolutely nothing. This is not to say that Mondo was not good at anything. On the contrary, he was actually quite skilled at the art of sitting and not completing anything productive for almost hours at a time. He busied himself with spinning his pencil around his fingers and admiring the ceiling. It’s not like he couldn’t cheat a bit on the assignment when he got back to the dorms. Somewhere between five and fifty minutes passed, and then the class was over. Once Mondo was in his own head time tended to melt away as if nothing else mattered. He loved to think about his motorcycle, and how the wind would make his pompadour come undone. A slight inconvenience, yes, but there’s a reason he always brought some product with him.

He was pulled from his thoughts by a pair of footsteps approaching him. Mondo didn’t have to look up to know who it was, from the military march tempo of his boots hitting the ground to the glare from earlier.

“Ishimaru,” he grumbled, without looking up.

Silence. Mondo made a show of sighing loudly before meeting his eyes.

“Do you need something?”

“Owada, I have told you many times the importance of punctuality. You were late again today,” he stated the obvious.

“Traffic.” He lied.

“You live in the dorms.” Also obvious. Mondo did not reply, and tried to give the most menacing stare possible. He wanted to be left alone so he could leave. Kiyotaka did not seem to get the memo. He stood there, posture rod straight, and waited. Mondo’s brow furrowed.

“Now what.”

“I will accompany you to our next class, and we will avoid traffic together.” Mondo gritted his teeth at that.

“You think you’re funny, huh?”

Kiyotaka shook his head, “No, I would like for our class’ attendance to improve and this is the simplest solution.” He spoke clinically, annunciating every letter precisely like he had scripted the conversation beforehand.

Mondo grabbed his bag and ducked out of the classroom, thankful that he chose the corner by the door. He wasn’t running from Kiyotaka. Only cowards run, he was simply avoiding him very quickly. And to think, he was thinking of attending most of his classes today. His mood was ruined, and he needed a smoke. Everywhere he went in the damn school, the bastard followed. He nagged him like his own mother, probably more. Not even his mother could nitpick as much as Kiyotaka.

With a glance behind him, he went outside. Mondo raised his arms to the sky in a silent prayer of thanks for allowing his escape from the school. He went down the steps two at a time and made his way over to the parking lot. He may live in the dorms, but that was only for the school year. When he wasn’t skipping class (or more accurately, when he was skipping class,) he liked taking long rides with no destination. But for now, he was just lighting a cigarette while leaned up against his motorcycle. He’d never admit it out loud, but Mondo loved how cool he looked when he did that. He felt his confidence swell when he was with his bike, and leading the gang meant his ego was fit to burst most of the time. As long as he didn’t think about it for more than a minute, his self-esteem was through the roof.

He watched the smoke dissipate into the air as he exhaled slowly, and just let time pass by idly. As many times as he tried to quit, he always came back to it. Mondo felt like there was a metaphor there that he couldn’t quite put his finger on. He finally flicked the butt down on the pavement and ground it under his shoe. Mondo turned to face the school again. He figured he’s given the moral compass enough time to give up and go to class, and with precisely 5 minutes to spare. Mondo cracked a smile. At least the nerd was predictable.

Mondo opened the door, letting it slam loudly behind him. He winced at the noise, hoping there was no one in the halls. He told himself it was best that there wasn’t a hall monitor waiting for him. His counselor at his old school would chastise him for getting validation from conflict, and he’s not quite sure what she meant by that. All he knew was that he loved a good fight.

He almost wished Kiyotaka would track him down just to have at him. Yelling was quite cathartic, after all. Getting under the skin of someone so keen on following every rule gave him a sense of satisfaction. Maybe that made him a bit of a sadist, but Mondo didn’t mind.

He kept himself busy until lunchtime, where he sat at his usual spot and picked at his already-bitten nails while waiting for Chihiro and Leon to keep him company.

Chihiro was first to arrive, Leon was probably still making heart eyes at their teacher. The poor sap fell for every girl he laid his eyes on, no matter how unattainable. He snickered even imagining it. Leon knew his boundaries of course, but he could still come on a bit strong. Chihiro sat down and Mondo greeted them.

“Leon said he’s busy milf hunting and that he’ll be late.” Mondo laughed a little too loudly at that, and Chihiro giggled at his reaction.

“Good afternoon to you too, kid,” he said, hand over his eyes, still smiling. A pause.

“You weren’t in class today,” Chihiro sounded disapproving, but not disappointed. They had long since learned that Mondo was more stubborn than most. The more you argued with him, the more he was set in his ways.

“Yeah, Ishimaru was bitching at me,” he rolled his eyes. Chihiro was well aware of how the two personalities clashed.

“I know you don’t want to hear it, but you can’t pass your classes without actually going to them _some_ of the time. Or without doing the work.”

“I do the work!” he faked an offended look. Chihiro laughed at that.

“Yeah, you cheat. You need to actually learn, there won’t be Google on the final exam.”

“You ain’t my parent, plus you could always tutor me if it got that bad.” Mondo grinned, food in his teeth.

“Because I have nothing better to do with my time than to teach you what you should already know.” They had this argument with him on the daily, nearly word for word. It would be endearing if it weren’t borderline annoying, and if Mondo wasn’t failing half his classes. Leon dropped his tray down with a shit-eating grin.

“Dude, she is totally into me.”

“You’re fuckin’ stupid,” Mondo snorted out. Chihiro hid their laugh behind their napkin, an action far too polite than what the pair deserved.

“Says the one that gets off on getting yelled at by the hall monitor.” Mondo punched him a bit too hard.

“Fuck you, man. He’s always on my ass and I just like pissing him off.”

Leon and Chihiro both hummed in agreement, like they were holding back a few comments. Leon was the first to break the silence.

“That’s kinda gay, dude.” Chihiro nearly keeled over laughing then.

“What the hell, Chihiro!”

“Leon said it, not me,” they defended. Leon high fived them under the table. Mondo glowered at him.

“Ishimaru makes my life a living hell, and when I try to get back at him it’s gay.” Mondo looked between the two.

“I think you’re being a bit dramatic Mondo.” Chihiro was adjusted to playing mediator when Mondo got too angry and ready to fight. “He’s just doing his job after all, it’s his talent. Imagine if Leon just stopped playing ba-“ Chihiro stopped themself.

“Nice one, Chi,” Leon said through a mouthful of school meatloaf. He looked at Mondo. “They _are_ right though. That’s just how he is, you should leave him be.”

“I’ll leave Ishimaru alone when he leaves me alone,” Mondo resolved.

Leon shrugged. “Whatever, dude. I just think you two should kiss and make up.”

“When hell freezes over,” Mondo said, stabbing at his broccoli.

The rest of their lunch hour passes similarly, with loud laughs and banter filling the air. He liked this. He was content.


	2. Chapter 2

Kiyotaka Ishimaru could not, for the life of him, let anything slide. As long as Mondo was his classmate, it was his duty to keep him on his best behavior, gang leader or not. It’s not like he enjoyed taking time out of his schedule to reprimand the biker, it was only out of necessity. As Kiyotaka saw things, if Mondo wanted to be left alone he should play by the rules.

So, he would simply not leave the man alone. He was nothing if not persistent. After being evaded, he was slightly downtrodden, but he continued to stalk the halls looking for a sweeping leather jacket and product-laden hair around every corner. Eventually, Kiyotaka gave in, mentally tallying his loss on the “Mondo v. Kiyotaka” board. The rivalry was mostly one-sided because he truly did not give Mondo special treatment. His treatment was completely proportional to his behavior, but Mondo seemed to take it personally. Kiyotaka did not know how to express this to the biker without angering him, so he left it alone. He turned around and marched to class, sitting right in the front row and awaiting the arrival of the rest of the class. To no one’s surprise, Mondo did not show.

He looked to his classmate, Fujisaki, at the adjacent desk. They offered him a sympathetic look.

“I attempted to escort Owada to class, but he did not seem too keen on the idea,” Kiyotaka mentioned.

Leon butted in. “I can just hear him now, grumbling about not wanting a babysitter.” Kiyotaka frowned. His intention was not to infantilize him, he only wished for attendance to go up.

“I will try again after lunch.”

Chihiro and Leon both wished him luck. He nodded curtly and turned to face the front again. He paid absolutely no attention whatsoever to the empty seat in the back corner of the classroom.

Kiyotaka chugged along, completing the assignment due the following week after consulting his textbook. It was like a safety net. He could never fully predict what would happen to him, so he tried to keep ahead in case of hospitalization or any other tragic event. His classmates thought it was overkill, and his teachers have long since learned to give him the whole load of coursework at once to save themselves time. The only unknown variable left in the equation that was his school life was Mondo. Kiyotaka would call him a wild card, but wild cards can take on any suit without a problem. Mondo was predictably unreliable. He was consistently breaking the rules. Kiyotaka wishes he was a wild card, that way he might take on the suit of a good student, even for a day.

Attendance was down. According to the student council meeting the previous evening, it was just below average. Any other student leader may see this as passable, even tolerable. But Kiyotaka needed to be perfect. He needed to be a beacon to others, to lead them to greatness. Leading high school students, however, proved to be about as easy as herding cats.

The Plan was simple. Be the best in his class, graduate as valedictorian, get a full-ride scholarship to his top college, major in political science, and work his way up to Prime Minister. Simple did not equate to easy, unfortunately.

He set his pencil down at the top edge of his desk, perpendicular to the spine of his textbook. Kiyotaka tucked his work away, ready to turn it in tomorrow when the teacher would assign it. He allowed himself to work on another class until it was time for lunch. He put both straps on his shoulders, not wanting to give himself back problems or mess up his posture, and strode to the lunchroom.

Kiyotaka would not describe himself as unhappy. As far as he knew, he was rather content. He was right on track on his Plan, save the minor hiccup that Mondo caused. His schedule was packed full of enriching activities, making him a well-rounded student. The only thing missing was a true group to call his own.

A good politician can keep on everyone’s good side, and that’s what Kiyotaka strived to do. He was civil and honest to all of his peers, but none of them took him under their wing. Most days he looked for a quiet spot at a mostly vacant lunch table and made polite conversation. Today was no different.

His eyes swept the cafeteria and landed on Mondo, doubled over in laughter at something Chihiro had said. Kiyotaka pushed down the irritation he felt. Mondo was always so carefree as if the rules did not apply to him. As if no one really expected much of him. He did not approve of his lifestyle in the slightest, and he was not jealous at all. Not even a little.

He ended up sitting by Kyoko and Makoto, the latter of which was going on about a snide comment Byakuya had made to him earlier in the day.

“I don’t know, Kyoko, I think he needs some sense knocked into him. He’s really mean.” he seemed to conclude his retelling.

“I think you misinterpret Togami’s intentions,” Kyoko said. She spoke quietly but firmly. She knew how to command a room with her mind instead of her voice. It was an admirable skill. Her comment seemed to confuse Makoto enough to silence him effectively for the next minute. Kyoko nodded at Kiyotaka in acknowledgment, and he beamed back at her, offering his standard greeting.

“Good afternoon, Kirigiri and Naegi!”

They fell into silence after that, awkward or not, Kiyotaka could not tell. Even if he could, he was not sure he could diffuse it. He settled instead upon keeping tabs on Mondo, if only for the sake of making sure he did not miss his next class.

Chihiro met his eyes only once but said nothing. Mondo never looked back.

It was for the best.


	3. Chapter 3

Mondo has had his fair share of illegal activity. He’s seen a lot of shit, and many rival gangs have tried and failed to take him down.

Which goes to say that he knew when he was being followed. And it didn’t take a lot of thinking to figure out who it was.

“Have you resorted to stalking, Ishimaru? Is that what you’ll do to make me go to class?” He asked rhetorically.

“It’s hardly stalking if you know you’re being followed. In addition, we both attend school here. I would personally describe this as escorting. I will be your escort.” As literal and as annoying as ever, apparently. Mondo didn’t make a joke about male escorts no matter how much he wanted to, he didn’t have the energy or time.

“What do you want from me? To be like you? We both know that’s never going to happen. Just let me do my shit and I won’t bother you.”

“Your habits are what bother me. I want all students of the 78th class of Hope’s Peak Academy to become the best versions of themselves. And you–” he pointed to Mondo, “–have room to grow. That is what I believe.”

Mondo whirled around. “Don’t act like you know me. Don’t even pretend to feel for me. You are a parasite that sucks the fun from everyone because you just hafta control everything.” He could feel his fist curl on instinct, and Kiyotaka took a measured step backward, leaning against the locker. He didn’t stop, “You think you’re so fantastic. You aren’t perfect and you can’t fix everyone you meet. Stop. Trying.” By the time he said the last words, he was seething. Mondo’s eyes almost looked like they were alight, burning with intensity. Kiyotaka didn’t even flinch.

No, that wasn’t quite right.

There were tears in his eyes. Kiyotaka stood tall there and did not even look away as he sniffed quietly. The bastard wouldn’t back down, ever. Mondo could respect it. He also felt a little guilty reducing the headstrong hall monitor to tears, but you didn’t hear that from me.

He took a step back as well, giving the boy a bit of room.

“I apologize.” Mondo was taken aback.

“What are you apologizing for?”

“I did not mean to be overly controlling. I really do want the best for all my peers. I am very sorry for coming across in that fashion,” he bowed to Mondo, still sniveling. Jesus Christ, now he actually felt like an ass.

“Look,” he started, jabbing a finger at him, “I’ll let you take me to class, but that doesn’t I’m happy about it. Or that I’ll do any work. But I’ll go to shut you up.” He figured that Kiyotaka would argue further, claiming that his education was important.

He immediately smiled at him, tears dried. It was a drastic change from the moment before.

“What a great compromise, Owada! We will start now.” He began making his way to class, and Mondo followed. He felt a little like he had been tricked, grumbling slightly. His afternoon ride would be postponed it seemed.

When he sat in his beloved corner seat, Chihiro shot him a look from the front row. He shook his head.

 _He got me,_ he mouthed.

 _Oh well,_ Chihiro mouthed back, obviously not meaning it in the slightest. Mondo glowered. The whole world was against him. Chihiro rolled their eyes at his grumpy look and turned back around.

Now that he was actually in class, there wasn’t much for him to do. He couldn’t take a smoke break, and being on his phone risked getting it taken away. Kiyotaka had trapped him. He glared at the back of his head. Mondo refused to do work out of spite, if nothing else. If he did, then he’d be playing right into Kiyotaka’s hands.

Instead, he flipped through his textbook and looked at the scribbles in the margins. Some were useful annotations, but the majority were notes passed back and forth by previous owners. It looked like someone was inviting another student to a seance with Dark Devas of Destruction. This school was so damn weird, but it made for good entertainment.

Once again, another period passed by while the teacher’s jargon went over his head. It used to frustrate him when he tried and simply could not understand, so Mondo just stopped trying. If he puts in no effort he can’t get disappointed. He just let it go. Even he knew not everything was worth getting mad over. Kiyotaka was a different story.

It seemed that no matter how mean he was to Kiyotaka, he always returned to him more determined than the time before.

“Y’know, there’s about ten minutes before the next class,” Mondo started. Kiyotaka nodded, not seeming to get the implication. He started again.

“So, we don’t have to go straight to class.”

“Where else would there be to go?” He seemed genuinely confused, like there was nothing conceivable outside the realm of school. He gestured to Mondo’s bag, a signal for him to get going. “Being early makes a wonderful impression, and we’ll have time to get a head start on the day’s work!” Kiyotaka seemed to think that Mondo should have the same level of excitement about the prospect of being early as he did. He was utterly unaware of the differences between himself and the people around him, to the point where it was almost comical.

“I’ll make an upstanding citizen out of you yet, Owada”

His lip curled. “Shut your fuckin’ trap.” Kiyotaka shot him a reprimanding look at the swear word, but said nothing more. The two walked in tense silence from class to class for the rest of the day. Maybe Kiyotaka wasn’t as oblivious to Mondo’s distaste for him as he thought.

Well, good for him then. He didn’t care.

He didn’t care at all.

The silence absolutely did not grate on Mondo’s ears and Mondo absolutely did not think about Kiyotaka crying earlier. He did no such thing.

Kiyotaka, on the other hand, was at peace. There have been many people in his life that did not like him, so he was well acquainted with the feeling. Despite this, he always tried his best to be polite, even if he could be a little pushy. He had learned that when he had to be around someone who did not care much for his company, it was better to wait for them to strike up a conversation first. To Kiyotaka, social interactions were almost formulaic in nature, where there was one correct response to every statement that he just had to find. The difficult part, though, was finding the exact formula for each person.

Mondo’s was still a work in progress. He’d figure out the right thing to say eventually. He’d make Mondo listen to him.


End file.
